L'Esplanade in Domme

[Images]

I will be in the Dordogne soon and have am thinking about dining at L'Esplanade in Domme. Has anyone eaten here in the past and if so what are your thoughts?

The restaurant has mailed me their menu and the fixed menu prices are 40 and 47 Euros depending on the plats principaux you choose. The cheese board is an extra 10Euros.

Thanks

[SethG]

I can tell you that the setting is lovely.

I rented a house in Domme with my family last May. We were there for a week, and considered that restaurant a number of times. But we never actually ate there. It is a rather formal-looking dining room. Unlike most of the other famous towns in the area, Domme is perched atop a hill (hence its name). The L'Esplanade restaurant is situated next to the town square at the very top of the hill. There are very nice views of the valley and river below from the restaurant and the square, and from the square there is a nice little trail that follows the town wall.

Domme itself is worth a visit primarily for the view. It is a pretty, but very small town. You can walk the whole town in about half an hour. We found it to be a very convenient base for seeing the area. In the summertime, I think it is mobbed with tourists (mostly French), but if you're going soon you will likely find it charming and empty.

Sorry if this post is a waste of your time-- we had a nice time in Domme and I like to reminisce!

[Images]

Thanks!

No your post isn't a waste of time! How long is the drive from Domme to Sarlat? We are staying in Sarlat so will be driving back there after a late dinner!

[SethG]

Sarlat is, of course, another beautiful town. The market days there (Wednesday and Saturday, if I recall) are really something. We were there at the height of strawberry and asparagus season, and I'll never forget those berries. They were the best I've ever tasted, and they are arrayed by the sellers according to their ripeness/hue.

Sarlat is much larger than Domme, and has some suburban areas around it. You might be able to get from Sarlat to Domme in as little as half an hour or 45 minutes (it's only 10 km away!), but you may find that there's quite a bit of traffic going in and out of Sarlat on the little two-lane roads that serve it. We went to Sarlat twice while we were in the area, and during one of these trips we were stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic on the outskirts of Sarlat for at least an extra half-hour.

Just a suggestion, but you might come to Domme in the late afternoon, take a look around in daylight and then have dinner. It is a pretty little town with a nice feel to it, and some well-preserved walls and gates. It's also a very easy ride to Domme from Beynac and La Roque-Gageac, two other tiny towns I'm sure you'll want to visit.

Enjoy your trip!

[Bux]

Sarlat is also a town that's much more charming out of season than in season.

[marcus]

I would not recommend Esplanade unless you go at lunch for the view. It's not bad, but doesn't seem to have much feel of terroir in the cooking, and I am always most disappointed in high style cooking that doesn't quite make it. I also found the restaurant to be quite expensive and I'm not sure that you have the full picture from the prix fixe menus that they sent you. Much, much better, but without the view, and only slightly more expensive, is Le Centenaire in Les Eyzies. What is most interesting overall in the area are the local restaurants with Perigourdine cooking, you can ask around for the best recommendations. I remember a couple of restaurants in La Roque Gageac, but don't remember their names, one was in a hotel.

[ann]

We ate at L'Esplanade when we rented a house in Domme in October 2002. I wonder if it was the same house, Seth. We had a very passable dinner, with perfectly prepared lamb chops, but as Marcus points out, it could have been anywhere in France and it was expensive. Our favorite, to which we returned a couple of times, was la Belle Etoile in la Roque-Gageac. It is a hotel restaurant so it may be the one Marcus has in mind. There were 2 menus, at 20€ and 30€, and the view, along the river, and the food were delightful. BTW, Sarlat is 8 miles from Domme, and with no traffic it takes about 25 minutes. A great site to figure out times and distances is Via Michelin, although I think you have to add about 20% to the time.

Edited March 17, 2004 by ann (log)

[menton1]

Sarlat-le-Canéda is truly one of the most beautiful villages in France, at any time of year. The pedestrianised area retains most of the medieval structures from hundreds of years ago, with beautiful shops and beautifully and tastefully restored walkways. Just wandering around Sarlat among the alleyways of this district is dreamy. You will probably buy some paté or rillettes from the endless arrays of the stores run by the farmers, although prices are better at the Saturday market.

Another great find in the countryside around Sarlat is the Fermes Auberges, where you will get a wonderful meal at a farm, and where by regulation they must grow and raise everything you are served on the property. A great, unique experience!

[Images]

Thank you so very much for the recommendations. I did make a note earlier about the Fermes Auberges on D46. I hope to go there.

We have been in Sarlat before, but just for a few hours. We're thrilled to go back for several days this time.

We're going to St. Emilion for 1 night to hop onto the TGV back to Paris from Libourne. Do you have any good dinner recommendations there?

I'll post another post for that question.

Thanks!

[SethG]

We ate at L'Esplanade when we rented a house in Domme in October 2002.  I wonder if it was the same house, Seth ....  Our favorite, to which we returned a couple of times, was la Belle Etoile in la Roque-Gageac. 

This is very funny.

Our favorite meal in the Dordogne region was a lunch we had at La Belle Etoile! If the house you rented was Les Rosiers, then there's some kind of "Double Life of Veronique" thing going on.

We didn't really go out to dinner while we were in the region. Our daughter was about fourteen months old at the time. We had lunch out almost every day, then cooked in the house we rented. So I can't tell you if the food at L'Esplanade is good. My comments above were really about the view, which you can also get free of charge.

[Images]

La Belle Etoile in La Rogue-Gageac doesn't open for the season until April 4 so we won't be able to enjoy dinner there

[ann]

Well, Seth, the house we rented was indeed Les Rosiers, and my review of it can be found here.. Clearly something funny is going on! We cooked dinner "at home" several times too -- it was such a well-equipped kitchen, and the view across the valley from the deck wasn't too shabby either, was it?

[SethG]

Images: how was your trip?

[SethG]

I feel used.

[cigalechanta]

a friend's photos of Domme,

http://www.ofoto.com/BrowsePhotos.jsp?show...&Uy=xmttlf&Ux=0

[Gavin Convery]

Do you have any more details of your meals at Belle Etoile?

I am staying near Sarlat this Summer and am looking for some reasonably priced restaurants (I have Hotel du Centenaire and Pont de l'Ouysse already booked for the high end).

Thanks...

[Images]

Hi Seth,

Sorry, I haven't been on the board lately. Planning another trip you know!

Our trip to the Loire and Dordogne was great! It was a very quiet time to go, before Easter. We first went to Chartres and had a nice, filling lunch of galettes at Trois Lys Creperie, 3, rue de la Porte Guillaume. We joined the afternoon tour given by Malcon Miller of the cathedral. He had just returned from the U.S. and his mothers funeral. For dinner we just had pizza, but it was excellent, at LaPassacaille Pizza and Italian Restaurant.

We drove from Chartres to the Loire. First we visited Blois chateau. At Chambord it was 6 degrees, so cold in the Chateaus, but bright and sunny outside. We next visited Cheverny, and not to many tourists were there. We stayed at Hotel La Roseraie in Chenonceaux which was a nice place to stay. That evening we ate at Le Cheval Blanc in Blere. This is a 1* restaurant and was just excellent. It was totally booked. The menu was 40Euros each. The next morning we visited Chateau Chenonceau. We were the only people touring for the first hour. We used the brand new ipod guided tour they are the first to use. It was great. We went onto Amboise and Le Clos Luce, and the Chateau d'Amboise. Chaumont-sur-Loire was closed until April 2. We drove onto Loches which is a small town which we loved. There is a little tea salon here with a large selection of teas and cakes. The owner has loads of personality. It was a great break. We ate that evening at Hotel La Roseraie restaurant. We heard it was good, but we were disappointed in it.

The next morning we went to the Chateau de Langeais which I just loved.They have an outstanding tapestry collection. We went onto Villandry where we visited the gardens but didn't go into the Chateau. What a fantastic place, even in early spring. We at at l'Etape Gourmande, a restaurant at a goat farm here. It was the best experience we had!! http://www.letapegourmande.com will give you the details. I ordered a la carte and it was delightful. The restaurant has several table and is in a stone building.We bought some of their goat cheese to take with us to snack on the next couple of days. On to Usse Castle, Chinon Castle, and spent the night in Chinon at Hotel Diderot. It was a great place to stay, but Chinon was absolutly desserted. Everything was closed, from restaurnats to shops. We had the worst pizza here. This is not a town to stay in off season.

We drove to Oradour-sur-Glane on our way to Sarlat. This is the village the Nazi's gathered all 623 town people together, 4 days after D-Day, and machine gunned them in the church and then burned the church. Only 1 woman survived from inside. This is a very moving museum, then you walk through the ruined town, still as it was left. Very moving...

We stopped at Collonges-la-Rouge where a few shops were open. It's a beautiful village, then went onto Sarlat. We stayed at Hotel Madeleine, a nice large hotel, but very, very unfriendly staff. We had a very nice 22 Euro dinner at Quatres Saisons. It was a bit upscale, and didn't have the awful tourist menus so many restaurants have here. Many restaurants were still not open for the season yet. This was a problem the whole trip. We visited some Gites the next day to see their locations for future travel and drove to Domme, which was desserted. We found La Esplanade and did eat there that evening. All of your comments were correct. We did stick with the fixed menu the middle one. It was fine food but nothing special. It thinks it's very special which is a turn off. The Fermes Auberges La Colombia on D46 was closed until after Easter as was Le Centenaire Hotel and restaurant. We went inside here to find someone to talk to, but noone appeared and the interior was quite a mess. They were still cleaning up for the opening later in the month.

We enjoyed Chateau Beynac so much more than Caselnaud. We went to Font-de-Gaume, a cave with guided tours. Reserve ahead. It is excellent. We also had to get tickets for the English tour at Lacoste II. La Roque St.Christophe is a wonderful Trogladyste site. Well worth the time. We stopped at a very tiny town near here and had an excellent salad sitting at a picnic table along the river with the weeping willow trees all along the banks. Such a special hour. A tiny restaurant was open here, just for take out. Pitchers of wine, salads, and sandwiches were available at Le Dejuner sur L'Herbe. Chateau de Biron was off the beaten path, but was a nice stop, and the town of Monpazier was a quick stop for us. We had little time for Racamadour, but I love to go back for the day on a future trip.

Onto St. Emilion where we stayed at Hostellerie de Plaisance. This is a Relais & Chateaux. We had the tiny room for 120Euros. It was wonderful, of course and not so tiny. We had a great lunch at Amelia Canta. I think most of the town was here enjoying lunch! They have inside and outside dining. After lunch we took the excellent tour the TI gives of Trinity Chapel, the Catacombs, underground church etc. It's the highlight in town for me. It was Primeurs Week here, but it was winding down.We ate dinner at L'Envers du Decor and of course had a nice bottle of St.Emilion wine. We took the TGV from Libourne back to Paris. and had dinner again at Les Magnolias. They were thrilled to have us return, and it was again just excellent. They hoped we would return again. We had a wonderful time talking with a French couple at the next table. This was their first dinner here and they too were very impressed. I was impressed with their friendliness towards us during the meal! We peaked in at L'Atelier while in Paris since it was just down from our hotel. It looked like it would be an interesting dining experience. When we arrived the next morning at CDG I found that my name had been removed from the boarding list. They bumped me, not a nice thing to do to someone who had flown 3 round trips to Paris in 3 months. Air France, after a 30 minute search of my record, walked over to the Delta agent and put my husband and I in business class for the return flight. Thank you Air France.

In 3 weeks we return to France. We are staying at our very favorite B&B outside of a very tiny village east of Avignon. Restaurants there... the 25Euro 4 hour meal including many courses, and much wine at the B&B itself!!